Council approves lucrative airport concession contracts

City Council approved most of $1.6 billion in airport concession contracts Wednesday despite ongoing controversy about the fairness of the bidding process, including allegations that some winning companies crossed ethical lines. The 10-year contracts for all retail space at city-run Bush and Hobby airports along with many restaurants have long been a high-stakes ordeal, with many well-connected companies vying for the lucrative deals. Latrelle's is among the companies that filed a formal protest with the city though it was selected a prime contractor on a small coffee package at Bush, it felt the city's bidding process prevented the company from securing a larger coffee contract at the airport.